Knitting machine



' Dec. 9, 1930. Home 1,784,186

- KNITTING MACHINE Filed Jan. 6, 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet l 's.? 34 i Inventor.

w. 9, 3930* K. HOWIE 3 KNITTING MACHINE Filed Jan 6, 1923 5 She1s-$heet 2 I n uen i'or:

Jfe nit]; JYawz'e, Q2

UQC. 9 1930 HOWiE 1,784,186

KNITTING MACHINE j Sheets-Shem Inuen for.

Kenneth Jiawze,

Dec. 9, 1930. K. HOME 184,186

KNITTING MACHINE Filed Jan. 6, 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 W? l fim Fig.1

Inventor.- Jfen neik Jfa i Patented Dec. 9, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT osrics KENNETH HOWIE, OI NOBBISTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA, ABBIGNOB TO mm m. CO., 0]? NORRISTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION 01' PENNSYLVANIA m'r'rmo IAOKINE Application Med January 6, 1988. Serial 10.8,974.

The invention is desi ed to throw in a sglicing yarn and particularly at a point a ve the heel to give a pointed effect though I do not limit myself in this respect.

The invention consists in the features and combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and particularly set forth in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 shows a needle cylinder and jack cylinder in vertical section with the needles and the jacks, which latter are employed to advance the needles for taking the splicing thread for knitting the same into the fabric, the pattern drum and associated parts being shown in side elevation.

Fig. 2 is a front view of a knitting machine embodying the invention. Fig. 2a shows means for starting the pattern.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section through the jack cylinder, parts of the controlling mechanism for causing the needles to take the splicing yarn being shown in plan and in position out of operation.

Fig. 3b is a detail.

Fig. 3a is supplemental to Fig. 3 in that the parts are shown in the same position but certain features are omitted for clearness of illustration.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 with the parts in position ready to begin the knitting of the high splice of pointed formation.

Fig. 5 is a rear or inner side view of the controlling drum.

Figs. 6 and 7 are views of the first two upper discs of the drum.

Fig. 8 is a view of the two lowermost discs.

Fig. 8a shows views of a spacing disc of the drum.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of the cam and cam carrier for elevating the jacks.

The element shown in this fi re is shown in the same position substantia 1y that it appeals in Figs. 3 and 4.

Fig. 10 is a view of the inside face of the elevating cam and its carrier arm. This view is made to conform with the relation of the parts in Fig. 9 for which purpose this cam piece is viewed as looking down on the concave side of the element which appears uppermost in Fig. 9. Fig. 100 shows the cam in section.

Ilig. 11 is a front view of a series of jacks in the normal relation in which they are located in the jack cylinder.

Fig. 12 shows 0, art of the series of acks employed in-the ack cylinder, said acks being in side elevation.

Fig. 13 is a detail plan view.

Fig. 14 is a sectional view of the drum and so certain associated parts.

Fig. 15 is a diagram of the fabric show-' ing one full point and one half of the central point.

In these drawings 1 indicates a needle cylinder of, say, a Wildman spring needle knitter built under the patents of Pigeon for instance see No. 1,330,818, Feb. I'Z, 1920. 2' are the spring needles. 3 indicates one of the usual yarn feed fingers for delivering yarn to the needles as in the said Pigeon hosiery machine. A jack carryin cylinder 4 is arranged below and coaxial y with the needle cylinder, these cylinders being rotated by a gear 5 arranged between the meeting ends of the cylinders. The jack cylinder carries within its grooves a series of jacks 7, see Figs. 1, 11 and 12.

In the particular embodiment of the invention chosen to disclose the principles and general character of mechanism involved in this invention the jacks are adapted to raise certain of the needles at a point in the needle circle substantially opposite the point ad jacent main yarn finger 3 where the usual knitting cam sets are located in the Pigeon hosiery machine so that these needles will take the splicing yarn from the yarn guide 8 and knit the same into the fabric with the yarn introduced at thesaid main feed 3 when these needles reach the knitting cams to form the plated design above the heel. This design may consist of an upwardly tapered area defined by the splicing yarn which will be of a different color from that of the main yarn. Or instead of having but a single tapered area or point there may be a plurality of these tapered areas spaced apart, and if desired of different heights (Fig. 15) to ferred to.

give the pointed design effect in a plurality of points.

The jacks 7 of which there may be any desired number, are all of equal length. Each has a butt 9 near its lower end to ride up along a jack raising cam 10 hereinafter re- Each jack when in lowermost position is in spaced apart relation to the needle or the jack thereof it is intended to operate, see Fig. 1. That is to say each splicing jack when down to its low limit has a space between its upper end and the lower end of the regular needle jack 11 so that in rising the upper end of the splicing jack must traverse this space before striking and beginning to raise the needle jack with its needle.

As in the Pigeon machine, the needle cylinder rotates clockwise and in the present machine the jack cylinder rotates with the needle cylinder.

In knitting that portion of the leg of the stocking above the high splice the jacks 7 for controlling the needles for taking the splicing yarnare inactive because the cam 10 which is intended to raise these jacks is retracted away from the jack 0 Under. This jack elevating cam is mounte on a carrier arm 12 pivotally mounted at 13 on a fixed part of the frame. A spring 14 retracts this carrier arm ti withdraw it from the cylinder. It is stopped in its retracted position by a finger 15 thereon resting upon disc 27 of the controller drum 16.

The cam 10 has two inclined steps, the lower one 10a giving to the jack 7 when the cam is set close to the cylinder, its initial upward movement to bring the upper end of the jack to the lower endof the needle jack 11,

v and the second inclined step 10?) raising the jack 7 so as to force the jack 11 with its needle 2 high enough to take the splicing yarn from the guide 8. Between these two steps the cam 10 has a horizontal portion 100 and while the jack 7 is traversing this horizontal portion (supposing the cam 10 is adjusted in close to the cylinder) it is subject to control by its arm 17, there being one of these for each of the types of jacks. These arms are pivoted on a post at 18 to swing in a horizontal plane towards and from the jack cylinder. They are biased by spring fingers 19 bearing on their tail portions 20 to lie normally away from the jack cylinder and out of the path of the jacks, in which position they are stopped against further movement outward by their ends bearing on the controller or pattern drum 16. They are each provided with a cam edge 21 substantially in the same plane radially of the cylinder with the horizontal portion 100 of the cam 10. So that supposing any one of these arms is adjusted in towards the jack cylinder it will present its cam edge 21 to the jack which has been partly elevated by the first step or incline 10a of the cam 10 and as this jack traverses the horizontal portion 100 of the cam it will ride against the said cam edge or incline 21 of the depresser and this particular jack will be buried within its groove of the jack cylinder and hence deflected to a position so that its butt will not ride up along the second stepor incline 10b of the cam 10 and therefore this jack will not be elevated further and will not raise its needle to take the splicing yarn. The jack controlling arms 17 are arranged in a bank one above the other as shown in the front view Fig. 2. Also they are shown in Fig. 1 where the ends of these arms appear between the drum 16 and the jack cylinder.

As before intimated these arms bear at their free ends upon the controller drum 16. This drum is mounted to rotate about a pin 16a depending from the fixed ring or frame plate 22 to which said hanger or pin is held by a nut 23. The pin has a head 24 at its lower end seated in a recess in the ratchet wheel 25 at the bottom of the drum by which head the drum is suspended in proper position.

The drum is composed of a series .of discs 26 of which only three need be illustrated in detail as in Figs. 6, 7 and 8. These discs are in the form of cams and there is one for each arm 17, and one 27 at the bottom of the drum for the finger 15 of the cam carrier arm 12. The uppermost one of these drum discs, see Fig. 6, has a cam edge made up ofa projection or tooth 26a of limited extent measured in a direction circumferentially of the drum. This cam disc is to control the uppe most arm 17 of the set or bank. The next disc from the top, which is to control the second arm 17 from the top has the high part 26b of its cam edge of greater extent circumfer entially than the high )art 26a of the upperilnost7disc'. This second cam disc is shown in The third disc from the top which is to cooperate with the third arm 17 from the top is provided with a longer high part than that of the second disc and so on to the lowermost disc, the high part of each being of greater extent circumferentially than the high part of thedisc next above, the increase in length of the high parts progressively from top to bottom being by the same increment. so that we have a special stepped for mation as indicated at 28, Figs. 1 and 5, the lowermost pair of discs 27 having the longest high part 260 as shown in Fig. 8. These discs have spaces 26d Fig. 8a between them of longer diameter than the cam discs. It will be noted that the high part of each disc is defined at One end by an inclined edge 29 whereas the other edge presents-an abrupt. drop radial to the drum. All the inclined or frontedges 29 of the various discs are vertically in line as indicated in Fig. 5 representing the inner side of the drum or that lli i side which is nearest to the jack cylinder when the drum is at rest in normal position.

\Vhen in said normal position i. e. with the attachment out of action the drum will be in the position shown in Fig. 3a with the ends of the arms 17 all on the low parts of the cam discs, and with the front inclined edges 29 of the discs, as in said figure close to the ends of said arms 17.

The lowermost arm 17 will be restin with its end in the notch 30 or low part of t e uppermost one of the pair of discs 27 and the finger '15 of the cam carrier 12 will be resting in a similar notch or low part of the lozwermost one of the lowermost pair of discs 2 Now supposing the drum to be turned from the position shown in Fig. 3a to the position shown in Fi 4 (which will be a two step movement) t e high part of the cam edge of all the discs will be 0 erated against their respective arms 17 an the finger 15 of the cam carrier 12 and will set these parts in close to the jack cylinder.

The jacks when down in normal or inactive position are held in their grooves against outward radial movement by the flange 31 of a ring 32 fixed to a base ring 33 attached to the lower end of the jack cylinder.

This flange defines a groove 34 between itself and the vertical outer wall of the ring in which the lower rounded ends of the jacks are seated when they are down in inactive position.

The ring 33 is provided with an incline 35 against which the lower end of the jack rides at it moves down and thus locates the lower end of the jack in proper position with its butt 9 projecting from the cylinder to be engaged b the end 10d of the cam 10 when this is a justed into position close to the jack cylinder.

The rotary step by step movement of the drum releases the arms 17 seriatim from the upper one to the lower one of the bank so that these arms one after the other will fly outwardly away from the cylinder under the action of their springs 19 until stopped by the low part of their respective cam discs of the drum 16. These arms therefore will release the jacks with which they cooperate so that they also seriatim will be permitted to be under the full influence of the cam 10 including its final elevating step or incline 10b for raising the needles.

These arms 17 are therefore at times depressors for the jacks to depress or bury them within their guide grooves so as to escape the elevating incline 10b, and at other times i. e. when they are in their outermost position. they are releasers for the said jacks in the sense that they release them to be under the full influence of the cam 10 including its incline 10?).

This rotary movement of the drum is initiated by mechanism which is started by the action of a vertical rod 35 connected by a link 36 with suitable pattern mechanism including a lever 37 pivotally mounted at 38 and controlled by a pattern disc or wheel which is a part of the regular installation of the Pigeon machine, it being designated as part 69 of the Wildman catalogue spring needle knitter of 1920 and called pawling ratchet wheel. This wheel has a cam block 39 thereon which 10 operating the lever 37 determines the time o pulling down on the rod 35.

The first action that takes place when the vertical rod is pulled down is to cause the pivoted dog 40 on this rod to depress the spring catch 41. In performing this action the shoulder 42 of the catch 41 strikes the plate 43 and depresses it. This plate is attached to the catch 41. The depression of this catch 41 releases the starting lever 44 pivoted at 45 which under action of the spring 14 throws its forked end 46 forwardly, thus through pin 46 turning the disc 47 clockwise. This disc carries the drum idler 48 which is pivotally mounted thereon at 49 and has an end 50 adapted to hold the pawl 51 out of enga ment with the drum ratchet 25 so that despite the fact that this pawl is in regular uninterrupted reciprocation its movement at times will be idle because it rides upon the end 50 of the idler. The idler is held in this position to retain the reciprocating pawl out of engagement with the drum ratchet 25 by a pin 52 on the under sideof said drum driving ratchet which pin affords a stop for the idler which has a shoulder'or finger 53 to engage the pin.

So long as this pin engages the finger or shoulder on the idler the latter will be held out and the pawl will ride idly thereon and not operate the driving ratchet. When, however, the disc 47 is turned as just stated by the starting lever 44 in a clockwise direction the idler finger or shoulder 53 is removed from the stop pin 52 and the idler is than free to swing inwardly towards the axis of the ratchet under the spring pressure of the pawl and the pawl can then engage the drum driving ratchet and turn the drum, when allowed to do so by the timing ratchet 54. This timing ratchet is loose on the axis coaxially with the drum and it has deep and shallow teeth, say, every fourth tooth 55 is a deep tooth, so that the drum will be advanced counter clockwise one step for every four feeding movements of the pawl 51. This pawl is carried pivotally by an arm 56, mounted coaxially with the drum, the pawl being pressed to its work by a leaf spring 57.

The pawl carrier arm is connected with an arm 58 also rotatively mounted coaxially with the drum, the connection between these arms being the central shaft 59. This arm I. i. operated y a lever 60 pivoted coaxially with th drum, i. e. on the shaft or pin 59, a Ln-h lever bears upon a screw 61 mounted in the arm 58 for adjustment of the pawl carrier ri-latzvc to the operating lever. The operating lever has a roller (32 bearing upon a cam surface or edge 63 of the. plate or ring 32 surrounding the lower part of the jack cylinder to rotate therewith. the arrangement being such that for each revolution of the needle and jack cylinder the. pawl will perform one movement, but as above described only every fourth pawl movement will be efiective in turning the drum.

The spring stop 41 returns to normal position as soon as the incline 35a on the pawl by riding on the edge 40a of a guide plate 401) frees itself from the plate 43.

\Vhile the machine is making plain fabric and not high splice all the jacks are in lowermost position with their lower ends seated in the groove 3-1 wherein they are held against outward radial displacement. \Vhen high splice is to be formed the movement of the drum will throw inwardly towards the jack cylinder the cam 10 for elevating the jacks.

At the same time the whole set of depressors 17 will be thrown in towards the cylinder. These actions are due to the pressure exerted by the vertically aligned inclined shoulders 29 of the drum discs. The jacks are formed with different lengths (vertically) of projections or abutments 7a to cooperate with the depressors. All the depressors are thrown in at the same time when the high splice is about to be knit, but they are released to move outwardly under the action of their springs 19 acting upon their tail pieces, and this outward movement takes place seriatim or step by step. first the upper releaser 17, then the next highest, then the next third from the top and so on to the lowermost. Fig. 11 shows a number of the jacks as they are relatively arranged in the grooves of the jack cylinder from which it will be seen that the lower ends of the abutments 7a define an inverted V- shaped formation. The abutment edge 7a of the two central jacks of the group Fig. 11 are the shortest (measured vertically) so as to be acted upon only by the uppermost jack releaser 1t. The jacks lying at each side of the two central ones have abutment edges long enough to be engaged by the second releaser from the to The next jack on each side of the four above mentioned have abutment edges long enough to reach down to be acted on by the third releaser counting from the top, and so on down throughout the whole group of jacks, each succeeding one counting from the center of the group outwardly at either side having its abutment edge, reaching down a step further than the next receding jack counting towards the center 0 the group, the two outermost jacks of the group, one at either side thereof having their abutments the longest, so as to reach down to be engaged by the lowermost releaser.

\Vhen the depressors 17 are in towards the cylinder they will retire or depress the jacks into their grooves so that they will not be engaged and elevated by the elevating cam 10 to raise the needles for taking the splicing The elevating cam is thrown in as before stated at the same time as all the depressors. This takes place when the jacks are at the rear of the cylinder.

As the jacks come around they rise on the first step 10a of the cam 10 and their projections are thus brought into line with their respective depressors. So long as the depressors are in, the acks will not rise all the way up to strike and raise the needle, but on the contrary they will be buried in their grooves by the depressor. This action takes place as the jack is passing the part of the cam which is horizontal on its upper edge. The inclined parts of this cam are bevelled as indicated at 10s: to fit the beveled lower side 9a of the butt so that as the jack comes around in low position its butt which now lies outward to greatest degree from cylinder will engage the bevelled edge of cam and lock therewith, while it is rising to the level of its depressor. We are supposing that all depressors have been thrown in. Therefore all jacks in passing the depressors will be buried in their grooves by the projections on the jacks riding on the cam incline 21 of the depressor. In order to allow this action to take place the horizontal art of the cam at 100 is flat on top, i. e. not velled, hence the jack will be deflected by the depressor off from the raising cam before it strikes the needle. This condition may persist for a number of revolutions of the machine dependcnt upon the timing ratchet wheel 54 which determines once the attachment begins to function how lon the drum will remain at rest, i. e. the disposition of the deep teeth will determine this.

Now when the drum turns through the prescribed angle the uppermost depressor will snap outward as soon as the radial shoulder 26a on its cam passes beyond the end of the depressor. This action will be due to the spring bearing on the tail of the depressor, which now becomes a releaser for the jack.

The splicing jacks which belong to this uppermost releaser 17 which has snapped outwardly and which have their abutments 7a of the shallowest dimension vertically, see at right of Fig. 12. will be left free to traverse their regular circular path and their butts will now ride up the raising cam with which they interlock. because of their bevelled formation, and thus the needle will be raised take the splicing yarn from yarn guide 8, ..nd this needle will remain up until the regular knitting cam set is reached where this yarn will be knit into the fabric with the main yarn from the main feed ling-hr 3. After aving raised the needle the sp 'cing jack will be returned to its low position by a retracting cam 65, shown in dotted lines, said cam being fixed to and depending from the fixed frame. As the controller cam of the drum belonging to the uppermost releaser 17 and the two center splicing jacks is composed of a high part of small extent circumferentially and a low part extendin almost throughout the entire circuit of 151 controller drum the said u permost releaser will remain in its outwar position during the ensuing step by step movement of the drum and until the controlling projection 26a comes around again and during this time the two central jacks will cause their corresponding needles to splice course by course until the pattern is completed, and this will be true of.all the other jacks once they are brought into action seriatim.

When the drum makes another step movement counter-clockwise the second cam disc from the top will move its high part from in front of the second releaser 17 counting from the top, hence this will snap back away from the cylinder and the two jacks on either side of the central pair will ride up the raising cam 10 and elevate their needles to take the splicing yarn, and during the passage of the two central s licing jac s theyetoo will be elevated by t e raising cam, cause their releasers are still in inactive or withdrawn position away from the cylinders and out of the path of the jacks. The above action is repeated so that one releaser after the other snaps out of action as the shoulders on the controller drum pass them in succession, each jack previously released from control by its releaser being advanced by the raising cam to cause the needles to take the splicing yarn.

It may be noted that the inclines 29 on the drum 16 in movin the depressors 17 inwardly, act upon inc ined sides 66 of inverted V shaped notches in the depressors, and in moving the raising cam carrier inwardly said inclines act upon the curved portion 67 of finger 15 attached to the cam carrier. This cam carrier is normally stressed outwardly by the same spring which stresses the starting lever 44.

When the jack raising cam carrier is moved inwardly it is held by a detent 68 pivoted to the vertically movable rod 35 said detent engaging a shoulder 69 on the carrier arm.

The rod 35 remains down until about ready to make the heel during all of which time the detent 68 is holding the cam carrier 12 with the jack elevating cam 10 in its position close to the cylinder to be engaged by the jack butts. When the heel is about to be made the rod 35 rises and withdraws detent 68 from holding engagement with the carrier arm 12 and then this moves outwardly carrying with it the cam 10 away from the path of the splicing jacks.

When about to make the hi h splice all needles are drawn down by shi ing the cam 70 inwardly. This cam 1s one common to the Pigeon machine and is not of itself a novel feature of the present invention. It is operated by a cam incline 71 on the rod 35 when this is drawn down. Said rod is normally pressed upwardly by a spring 72 The needles all having been retracted by this cam 70 (which it will be noticed consists of a plate mounted in inclined position to slide in a block 73 mounted on the frame close to the needle cylinder) such needles of the set which are to make the high splice are elevated from this retracted position by the jacks 7 in the manner above described.

In the ordinary operation of making a rectangular shaped high splice the cam 70 is thrown inwardly towards the needle cylinder only far enough to engage the long butt needles or jacks 0 the Pigeon organization. This draws down the long butt knitting implements so that they are below the line where the needles would take the splicing am. The remaining needles take the yarn and produce the high splice by knitting only part way around the stocking on these remaining needles.

Now in forming the designed plated section by the present invention the cam 70 is thrown in all the way, thereby taking down all needles and thus putting them in condition to be under control of the pattern drum and associated mechanism for making the pointed heel. In other words by lowering all the needles they are in condition to be selected by the jacks of the 'jack cylinder to make the design prescribed.

In doing this the only change necessary over ordinary practice in operatin the cam 70 is to put on a higher cam bloc for o crating the said sliding cam. The cam 0 is retracted by a spring 74. The timin ratchet 54 besides having regular teeth an extra deep teeth also has a flat tooth 5411. This flat tooth has the dual function of idling the complete mechanism when this fiat tooth comes around into the path of pawl 51 as well as assuring the starting of the rotary operation from a definite position for the beginning of each plated section. That is, provided, of course, that the pin 52 depending from ratchet has pushed idler 48 out to make pawl 51 miss engagement with the teeth of the ratchet 25. In this position of idler the pawl will not engage the timing wheel at all when the flat tooth comes around, hence rotary movement of all parts will cease. At other times even though idler 48 be out, the pawl 51 can still turn the timina' wheel because it just can engage the teeth,

radial movement by the flange 31.

of the same. This determines the point at which the mechanism will start.

The idler carrier disc 47 is returned to normal position by a counter clockwise movement after it has been moved clockwise by starting lever 44 through the action of the reciprocatin awl 51, which engages a tooth 47a of said A stop pin 48a limits the inward movement of the idler, this pin being on the carrier disc 47.

In the articular organization illustrated, but to which the scope of the invention is not restricted, the pawl 51 makes one oscillating movement for each revolution of the cylinder.

It moves the drum 16 one step in each four revolutions of the cylinder, but during this interval the jacks which have been brought into operation will continue to knit and hence fabric will have the stepped formation shown at 3 After the cam carrier arm 12 is thrown in the detent 68 engages it to hold it in this position, but as a matter of fact the carrier would be held in by its particular cam disc 27, see Fig. 8. This detent, however, continues to hold the carrier and cam in operation after the gap 30 in the cam releases the carrier arm, and as a result of this we et a continuation of the plating straight d own for a number of courses and as all jacks remain in we get the continuous strip 3 to y. This gives us in the stocking a continuation of the high splice plating to join the plating at the sole of the stocfing.

The splicing jacks have up er notched shoulders at 712 to be engaged y their retrecting cam 65.

A guard cam 65a is provided to prevent the splicin jacks from flying outwardly after they leave the elevating cam 10 and while they are being retracted to their lowermost positions in the groove 34.

From the above description it will be understood that when no splicing is being done the entire attachment includin the elevating cam 10, the jack releasers 1 the pattern drum and its operating mechanism is idle, the cam 10 being in its outward position together with the jack releasers, and the jacks remain down, seated with their lower ends in the groove 34, being retained against When the high splice is to be formed the cam 10 is set in towards the cylinder to remain in the path of the butts of the jacks during the entire operation of splicing. The whole bank of controlling arms 17 are also set in close to the jack cylinder. Under the action of the pattern drum, these arms are released seriatim to retract from the jack cylinder, thus releasing the jacks to be under t e full influence of the cam 10 for their complete elevation to raise the needles to take the splicing yarn.

The above specification and drawin are presented as illustrative of the princip es involved in my invention and not as restrictive upon the scope thereof for which reference is made to the ap ended claims.

In Fig. 13 I show a etent wheel 26a with detents 26 and 26g. This mechanism (letermines t e steps taken by the drum.

I have omitted the jacks from Figs. 3 and 311 but the disposition of these relative to the parts of the attachment is shown in Fig. 4.

I claim:

1. In combination in a knitting machine, needles, jacks, an elevating cam for the jacks normally out of operative position, a series of controllers for the jacks also nor mally out of operative position, a drum arranged on a vertical axis alongside the jack circle and having cam surfaces for setting said cam and controllers in operative position, said drum releasing the controllers seriatim to allow the jacks to be operated by the cam and to release the cam for its return to inoperative position after the jacks have performed their cycle of operation, substantially as described.

2. In combination with the needles, jacks, and controllers for the latter, a pattern drum for operating the controllers, a awl and ratchet for moving the same step liy step, a timing ratchet, a member for rendering the pawl idle in respect to the ratchet first mentiuned, a pin to set said. idling member in operative position, a carrier for the in, a starting member to operate the carrier to withdraw the pin to free said idling member, a catch for holding the said starting member, a cam for lowering all of the needles below the yarn taking level, operating means for said cam means for withdrawing the said catch 0 rated substantially simultaneously with t e cam which lowers the needles, substantially as described and an elevating cam for the jacks to raise them to elevate the needles to yarn taking position.

3. In combination in a plating knitting machine. a main feed, a plating yarn feed,needles, jacks, a cam for elevating the jacks to raise the needles to take the plating yarn, a pattern drum for moving said cam into operative position. a detent for holding the cam in said position, controllers for the jacks operated by said pattern drum, a lowering cam for lowering the needles preparatory to the raising action of the jacks thereon, starting means for the pattern drum operatin substantially in unison with the lowering o the needles by the lowering cam. a connection for operating the lowering cam and starting means, said detent being controlled by said connection to release the elevating cam.

4. A knitting machine comprising'a main yarn feed, a splicing yarn feed, jacks arranged in a group at one point of the needle row a cam to elevate the jacks to raise the needles to take the splicing yarn, said cam having movement towards and from the position in which it elevates the jacks, a series of controllers for the jacks, pattern means turning about a vertical axis adjacent the needle cylinder and having cams for moving the elevating cam and for moving the controllers towards the needle cylinder, to bur the jacks in their grooves out of line wit the cam, the cams of said pattern means permitting the outward movement of the controllers seriatim, while the elevating cam is maintained by said pattern means in its inward position, means for operating the pattern mechanism and means for impelling the controllers away from the needle cylinder. 5. In combination in a knitting machine, jacks to elevate the needles for making a tapered splice, said jacks having abutments which when the 'acks are inactive are in inverted V formation, said jacks also having butts, controllers for the jacks to en age the abutments of said jacks, said contro lers being arranged at diflerent levels to accord with the different levels of the ahutments in said inverted V sha ed formation, pattern means having cams or operating the controllers, said cams having high parts, starting from the same vertical line and extending to successively greater lengths circumferentially of the said pattern means from the uppermost to the lowermost cam to firstoperate all the controllers simultaneously to bury the jacks in their grooves and thereafter release them seriatim, a cam for elevating the jacks by engaging their butts, said attern means having a cam for setting the ack elevatin cam in operative position.

6. In combination, a needle cylinder, a main yarn feed, a. splicing yarn feed, needles, jacks, means for positioning the jacks outwardly in respect to the cylinder when said jacks are in their lowermost position, an elevating cam for the jacks normally out of line with the butts of the jacks, means for moving said elevating cam into line with the butts of the jacks in the outward position of the latter, controllers for the jacks, means for setting said controllers inwardly towards the cylinder in a body to bury the jacksin their grooves after being elevated part way by the elevating cam. and for releasing said controllers seriatim to allow the jacks to remain out. and to allow said elevating cam to complete the elevating movement of the jack to raise the needle to take splicing yarn, said elevating cam initially raising the jacks from their outwardly positioning means to be then operated on by the controllers in prescribed order.

7. In combination in a knitting machine, a needle cylinder. needles, jacks having butts and abutments, an elevating cam for the jacks normally positioned out of line with the jack butts, controllers normally out of line with the abntments, and arranged one above the other, a pattern drum arranged on a vertical axis along ide the needle cylinder, means for giving the drum a step by step movement, said drum having cam surfaces extending circnmferenti ally thereof and at different levels one for each of the controllers, said rain surfaces starting with their high parts is the same radial plane of the drum and extending about the drum to progressively increasing degrees from the highest to the lowest cam surface, the lowest and longest hi h cam surface operating and holding the e evating cam in operative position, and the successively lon or high cam surfaces releasing the control ers successively, to allow the jacks in succession to be operated by the elevating cam.

8. In a plating knitting machine and in combination, a main yarn feed and a plating yarn feed, jacks arranged at a point in the needle row in a group and having butts by which they are lifted, means for normally holding said jacks radially outward in their grooves, when in their retracted position. a cam for elevating the jacks to raise the needles, said cam being movable towards and from the jack carrier and when in idle position, being located at its outermost limit and out of line with the lifting butts of the jacks, a series of controllers for the jacks, means for throwing the cam inwardly into position to lift the jacks and for throwing the controllers inwardly into position to render the whole group of jacks inoperative, and for thereafter moving said controllers seriatim outwardly to thereby allow said jacks to be operated bv the elevating cam to raise the needles, suhstantially as described.

9. In a knitting machine for plating according to claim 8, in which the jack elevating cam has a two step incline with a horizontal portion between the steps, the first step incline raising the jacks from the means which holds them outward in their grooves, the said controllers acting upon the jacks during their movement along the horizontal portion, and the second step incline lifting the jacks to elevate the needles, substantially as described.

10. In a knitting machine according to claim 8, in which the means for normally holding the jacks radially outward in their grooves when in retracted position consists of an outwardly and downwardly inclined cam surface at the bottom of the jack guide groove. substantially as described.

11. In a circular knitting machine having a main yarn feed and a plating yarn feed, a group of jacks for making patterns, controllers for said jacks. an elevating cam for said jacks. a pattern drum for operating all of said controllers as one body, together with the elevating cam, towards the needle cylinder, to thereby move the jacks to inoperative position and the cam to operative position and for releasing said controllers seriatim While maintaining the elevating cam in its operative position for thus placing said jacks under the action of the said elevating cam, said pattern means releasing the said cam for its return to inoperative position when the controllers have performed their functions, substantially as described.

12. A knitting machine according to claim 8 in which the cylinder which carries the jacks is provided with a groove at its lower end, the inner wall of which is inclined outwardly and downwardly and the outer wall consists of a flange for restraining the jack against outward movement, the said inner inclined wall setting the jack outward in its downward movement into proper relation for operation by said cam, substantially as described.

13. In combination in a knitting machine, a main yarn feed, a plating yarn feed, needles, jacks for elevating the needles, a cam for operating the jacks, controllers to bur the jacks in their grooves, out of line wit the said cam, or to permit said jacks to be elevated by the said cam, a pattern drum for setting the controllers in position to bury the jacks, or to allow them to be engaged by the cam, means for operating the drum step by step to perform a cycle of operation, said means including a device for rendering the drum idle at the end of said cycle, means for automatically starting the drum in operation at a prescribed period in the operation of the machine, the said operating means for the drum including a ratchet, a pawl to operate said ratchet step by step, a timing ratchet having deep and shallow teeth and a flat tooth to cooperate with said pawl. a pawl idling device for adjusting the pawl to in operative position a starting lever for operating the idling d ating the starting lever, substantially as described.

14. In combination in a knitting machine, a main yarn feed, a plating yarn feed, needles, acks for elevating the needles, a cam for operating the jacks, controllers to bury the jacks in their grooves, out of line with the said cam, or to permit said jacks to be elevated by the said cam, a pattern drum for setting the controllers in position to bury the jacks, or to allow them to be engaged by the cam, means for operating the drum step by step to perform a cycle of operation. said means including a device for rendering the drum idle at the end of said cycle, means for automatically starting the drum in operation at a prescribed period in the operation of the machine, the said pattern drum being suspended on a pin depending from the evice, and means for oper-- frame, and the operating means for said drum including a ratchet on the lower end thereof, with a timing ratchet below said drum, and means for controlling said timin ratchet with a pawl for operating sai ratchets.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature.

KENNETH HOWIE. 

